Banned
Trading, holding or mining can be an offence.
China
All virtual-currency business is illegal finance, and offshore exchanges may not serve people in China. A February 2026 circular replaced the 2021 notice, kept the ban and widened it to stablecoins and tokenised assets.
Read at: US Library of Congress, May 2026
Algeria
Law 25-10 of July 2025 criminalises issuing, buying, selling, holding and using crypto assets, and mining them.
Bangladesh
The central bank says transactions in, from or to Bangladesh to obtain virtual currency are not permitted, and treats them as a breach of the foreign exchange law.
Nepal
The central bank says cryptocurrency trading and mining are punishable under the Foreign Exchange (Regulation) Act.
Read at: Report of the Nepal Rastra Bank notice, September 2021
Kuwait
A July 2023 Capital Markets Authority circular bans payments, investing and mining with crypto, and bars regulators from licensing crypto firms.
Read at: Charltons Quantum, July 2023
Legal to own, not to pay with
You can hold it, but it may not be used to pay for things.
Russia
Cryptocurrency still may not be used for payments inside Russia. A law in force from 1 September 2026 lets ordinary investors buy through one licensed intermediary, up to ₽300,000 a year, after a test.
Read at: Bank of Russia, 2026
Türkiye
Since 30 April 2021 crypto may not be used, directly or indirectly, to pay for anything. The rule covers payments, not owning it.
Read at: Central Bank regulation, April 2021
Indonesia
Traded as a commodity on licensed exchanges, supervised by the OJK since January 2025. Banned as a means of payment.
Read at: OJK and Bappebti, January 2025
Vietnam
Law 71/2025 recognised crypto assets as a type of property from 1 January 2026. It is still not a legal means of payment.
Legal, with rules for the firms that serve you
Owning it is lawful; exchanges and brokers need a licence or registration.
United States
Legal. The IRS taxes digital assets as property, and firms exchanging them fall under FinCEN's money-transmitter rules.
Read at: IRS; FinCEN guidance, 2019
European Union
Legal. MiCA has applied in full since 30 December 2024, and firms offering crypto services need authorisation.
Read at: ESMA
United Kingdom
Legal. Firms register with the FCA under the money laundering rules, promotions have been regulated since October 2023, and full authorisation starts on 25 October 2027: firms apply between 30 September 2026 and 28 February 2027.
Read at: FCA; FCA, the gateway
Switzerland
Legal. The DLT Act has applied since August 2021, and banks must keep clients' payment tokens ready for segregation if they fail.
Read at: FINMA
Japan
Legal. Exchanges must register with the Financial Services Agency under the Payment Services Act.
Read at: FSA register
South Korea
Legal. The Virtual Asset User Protection Act has applied since 19 July 2024: customer cash sits at banks and most coins in cold storage.
Read at: Financial Services Commission
Singapore
Legal. Providing digital payment token services needs a licence from the Monetary Authority under the Payment Services Act.
Read at: MAS
Hong Kong
Legal. Virtual asset exchanges have needed a Securities and Futures Commission licence since 1 June 2023.
Read at: SFC circular, 2023
Australia
Legal. Exchanges must be registered with AUSTRAC, and it is against the law to run one without registering.
Read at: AUSTRAC
Canada
Legal. Businesses dealing in virtual currency register with FINTRAC as money services businesses.
Read at: FINTRAC
Brazil
Legal. Law 14,478 of 2022 put providers under the central bank, whose licensing rules came out in November 2025.
Read at: Decree 11,563 of 2023
India
Legal and heavily taxed: gains at a flat 30%, 1% withheld at source, and losses cannot be set against other income.
Read at: Income Tax Department
Nigeria
Legal. The Investments and Securities Act 2025 brings digital asset exchanges and providers under the SEC.
Read at: Investments and Securities Act 2025
South Africa
Legal. Crypto assets have been a financial product since 2022, and anyone advising or intermediating needs an FSCA licence.
Read at: FSCA update on licensed providers
United Arab Emirates
Legal and licensed (VARA in Dubai, the SCA federally). Only the dirham is legal tender, and shops may take only approved payment tokens.
Read at: Central Bank rulebook; Dubai Law 4 of 2022
Changed recently
The rule moved in the last two years.
El Salvador
Made bitcoin legal tender in 2021. A January 2025 reform made accepting it voluntary; reports differ on whether it still counts as legal tender.
Read at: Reason, February 2025
Bolivia
A June 2024 central bank resolution (082/2024) lifted the old block and allows payment channels to be used for crypto. The boliviano remains the only legal tender.
Read at: Ferrere, 2024
How gains are taxed in six big markets
The general treatment for someone holding bitcoin as an investment. Each authority lists exceptions, and traders are often treated differently.
United States
Digital assets are property, not currency. A sale or other disposal gives a capital gain or loss: short-term if held a year or less, long-term if held longer.
Read at: IRS
United Kingdom
Individuals normally pay Capital Gains Tax. Selling, swapping one token for another, spending or giving tokens away (other than to a spouse or civil partner) are disposals; moving them between your own wallets is not.
Read at: HMRC Cryptoassets Manual
Germany
Gains on privately held crypto are taxed only when the coins were held for one year or less; after a year a private sale is tax-free.
Canada
Crypto is treated like a commodity: a gain is either business income or a capital gain depending on the facts, and only half of a capital gain is taxed.
Read at: Canada Revenue Agency
Australia
Held as an investment, crypto is a capital gains tax asset. Selling, swapping, gifting or spending it is a disposal, and holding for at least 12 months can bring the capital gains discount.
Read at: Australian Taxation Office
Singapore
There is no capital gains tax. Gains are taxed only when buying and selling tokens is part of running a business.
Read at: IRAS
How this page is made
Each row states one rule and links to where we read it: the regulator's own text wherever one could be reached, otherwise a law firm or a national newspaper reporting it. Lists online also name Egypt, Iraq, Morocco, Tunisia, Qatar and Afghanistan as banning crypto. We could not confirm the current rule in those places at the source, so they are left out rather than guessed.
Limits. Rules change quickly, some apply to firms rather than to you, and federal or state rules can differ. Rows were checked in November 2026; the linked source is the place to confirm one before you act on it.
Questions
Which countries have banned Bitcoin?
Of the places on this page, China, Algeria, Bangladesh, Nepal and Kuwait have laws or central bank notices that prohibit dealing in it. Others forbid paying with it while allowing people to own it.
Is it legal to own Bitcoin in the United States?
Yes. It is taxed as property, and businesses that exchange it have to follow anti-money-laundering rules.
What is the difference between a ban and a payments ban?
A ban makes trading or holding it an offence. A payments ban, as in Russia, Türkiye or Indonesia, stops it being used to pay for things while leaving it legal to buy and keep.
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Figures on this page are calculated by CryptoKeyhole from our own Bitcoin node and the price data we collect, and refreshed automatically; estimates say how they are made. Nothing here is investment advice.